Holden shifted slightly as he watched the small farm through his scope, the scope highlighting any living being it spotted. So far, he had spotted at least three that went inside the main structure, one on each of the two guard towers, and several gathered around a small bonfire and spit, roasting up a meal. Those four looked absolutely wasted, staggering back and forth as they drank from a series of ceramic jugs.
Meanwhile, his three teammates were within fifty meters of the tower to his left, on the far side of the Ravine and laying hidden in the long unkempt grass. He only knew they were there because of the life detecting sensors in his scope.
"Holden, how do you hear me?" Roy's whispered voice cracked in his ear, having connected the comlink to a small earbud to prevent it from playing out loud.
"Loud and clear. Still only have eyes on the party goers and the two watch towers. No one's left the main building. Fair warning, there's almost no cover between you and the buildings."
"Alright, watch my back, I'm going to handle the first watch tower. Once he's down, get ready to hit the other tower."
Instead of questioning Roy's plan, he simply obeyed, a bit of an odd feeling knowing he was technically in charge of Roy. He swung his weapon around to his teammates, watching as one of the life signals began to crawl along the side of the ridge, well hidden in the grass. Once he was a good fifty meters behind the tower, he stood and walked casually up to the tower his blaster holstered.
The hell is he thinking!? They'll spot him like that! Holden wanted to say something, but when Roy began climbing the tower, the guard looked straight at him… then went back to scanning the perimeter as though it was normal.
Did that guard just mistake Roy for one of them?! When Roy reached the top of the tower, he slipped something off his belt, jamming it in the guard's back. The guard startled for only half a moment as Roy pulled the object out, the guard going limp after it was jammed into him. A moment later, Roy was easing the corpse to the floor of the tower.
Now that he could think about it, he understood how that had worked. This was a group of untrained bandits, and Roy had been absolutely relaxed, to the point that it was easy to mistake him as a bandit in the uncertain lighting. It was something Roy clearly understood could be done before he started this. And an interesting technique as well.
"Alright. Hollis, Stodel, pick up and on me. Holden, when the first grenade goes off, lay into them with everything you have." Roy's voice was much louder and clearer now, no longer having to whisper into his comlink.
In Holden's scope, the two women stood up and jogged to the tower as Roy climbed down it. A moment later, the trio were moving down the hill, Roy and who he assumed was Kyra by her much smaller size moving together while Stodel put a dozen or so meters between them.
Knowing it would only be moments before their attack started, he shifted his aim to the other tower, lining up his sight on the Bothan's head. With the rifle braced against the rocks, and only a range of two hundred meters, he was able to hold his sight entirely on the Bothan's head, despite his body's natural motions. He started to focus on breathing in and out as evenly as he could manage, his sight raising and lowering with each breath.
Brilliant light suddenly ignited for a split moment, just before a boom rocked his ears, marking a grenade blast. On cue with that blast, he let his breath out and snapped his shot off. His vision became nothing but red as the bright muzzle flash overwhelmed his eyes, a red bolt streaking between his weapon and the tower. His scope view showed the Bothan topple over the rail of the tower. Without a pause, he shifted his aim to the small campfire party, seeing the group diving for weapons and scrabbling apart. He didn't bother with precision as he started pulsing the trigger, sending a flurry of bolts toward them as he bounced between targets. He only hit one of them, and only in the arm, but it had the effect Roy no doubt wanted as the bandits were finding cover from his rifle. Which implied they had no idea the enemy was in their camp.
Several return bolts were fired from the house and from figures scrambling out of huts, the red bolts slapping the rocks around Holden. None were close enough for Holden to even consider a threat as he continued his rapid target bouncing fire. Another boom rocked the area, one of the ramshackle buildings collapsing as a second grenade went off. With it, a flurry of red, blue and green bolts ripped away from his companions in the valley, several of the bandits, particularly those in static positions of cover from Holden, were cut down by the blasts.
Alright, time to be precise… as he thought that, he lined up on a pirate who was trying to return fire on his companions, exposing himself to Holden. One calm bolt later and he joined the other corpses on the ground.
Yet another boom rocked his senses, Holden glancing at the flash to see that Roy and Kyra had moved to another hut, the grenade having gone off inside it. Kyra was still blasting any pirate she saw, the sheer volume of fire being produced, mixed with the utter chaos and shock of the attack, was keeping the pirate return blasts sporadic at best. After the grenade detonation, Roy slipped through the door of the building, the cracks in the walls showing several blue flashes. At the corner he left her at, Kyra was firing at the main building, simply adding to the chaos and no more. Until a group tried to leave the door only to be caught in her shots. Two of the five were hit center mass and dropped, one of the others being clipped as he ran, the last two both ducking back through the door instead of trying to get outside.
Well, back at it… he let out another breath, unable to prevent his body from quivering a little with adrenaline. Most of the pirates seemed to have forgotten about him in his small quiet spell, exposing themselves to him, Holden lining his sights up on the first one.
Roy did one last check of the bodies strewn about the makeshift room. Most had been severely wounded by the grenade blast or concussed. The makeshift cots and storage had been scattered about the single room building, adding to the chaos. Dispatching the few remaining bandits had been child's play.
Third building down, just the main two now. He took a deep breath to help regain control of it, his heart hammering with adrenaline. He hated the smell of burnt flesh and death normally, but something about being in a fight made it different to him. The ozone smell left in the wake of blaster shots, the burning metal, the sound of weapons fire, all of it excited him in a way he couldn't put to words. After a fight, he hated the memory of this feeling. But in it? He relished it. It was as addictive as a drug, if not more.
A smile slipped onto his face as he stepped back to the entrance, stopping for a moment. "Kyra! Friendlies coming out!" he shouted that through the wall, the loud zips of blasters making regular voice volume pointless. He waited just a moment for her to understand what he said before he rushed through the door and back around the corner, slipping behind her. She had her visor down, much as he and Madelyn did, but even in the green tinted world, she looked pale as a ghost, the edges of her body fuzzy as she trembled faster than the goggles could fully render. He had to imagine her eyes looked like saucers right now.
"Your doing fine Kyra. Just two more buildings. We're moving to the barn next, I'm going to need you to follow me in, okay?" he had to force himself to slow down, the thought of clearing another building out making his excitement rise even higher.
"O-Okay…" she audibly squeaked as she spoke, her voice louder than her norm. Which was a good thing as the grenade blasts and blaster fire made hearing difficult at the moment.
"Roy, down!" Kyra suddenly shouted, grabbing Roy's shoulder and forcing him to stoop over. A moment later, a trio of bolts ripped through the sheet metal wall, one of which was in line with where Roy's head had been.
"Huh, thanks Kyra!" he glanced at the hole once more, a little shocked to be honest. It would have taken a rifle of some sort to penetrate like that, as pistol bolts tended to break up on contact with an object. He took a moment to look through the holes, guessing the shots came from one of the windows in the main house, as they had ripped holes in both walls of the building.
Wait, she was looking at me, away from the enemy… how did she even know those blasts were coming? That thought stopped him for only a moment as he really didn't care. He wanted back into the fight. He slipped around Kyra, stepping far enough back from the wall to raise his weapon as he slowly eased around the corner. When he spotted a pirate, he took careful aim, the edge of the building almost blocking his view. A single squeeze of the trigger and a bolt lanced past the building, darkening the metal before burying itself in the pirate, sending the pirate to the ground.
"Stodel, Holden… Hollis and I are about to move to the barn. I need a wall of lasers between me and the enemy, you got that?" he had intentionally cleared the small buildings in the order he had to bring him as close as possible to the barn. It was still a good fifty-meter sprint to the barn though.
"Roger, laying into them!" Holden's voice echoed in his ear, visibly seeing Stodel nod to him. A moment later, she was firing rapid blasts at any and all enemies she saw. At the same time, fire from the ridge amplified.
That'll do. He peeked out once more, his weapon lowered as he surveyed as much of the area as he could. For the most part the enemy wasn't firing back at the moment. The few shots he did see were aimed for the ridgeline.
"Kyra, watch me. Once I start firing, run like your ass is on fire to me, got it?" he tossed that over his shoulder, not looking at her as he waited for what felt like the right moment to go.
"Okay." she still sounded like a squeaky toy.
As he waited, another salvo of more accurate shots ripped across the area from Holden's position, dropping several pirates. Roy took that as his cue, ripping out of his cover and into a full sprint. Powered by his excitement, he crossed the distance in a matter of seconds, slamming into the side of the barn as he skidded to a stop. Once there, he braced his hand on the wall and began blasting rapid flurries of shots away from the building, having clear shots on several pirates from where now was. Those exposed to him all fell, dead or dying. Just that one little sprint and following shots sent a tingle through his body that made his muscles twitch in excitement, his accuracy and speed starting to go up as he hit more and more of the targets he aimed for, even if they were just glancing blows.
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kyra sprinting her way across the same path he had taken. Several bolts zipped by her, but she seemed to duck and stop at the right times to narrowly avoid the shots before she slid in behind him. She was left visibly shaking by the wild sprint, her breath a ragged wheeze.
"Nice work! Let's clear the barn!" he pulled a grenade from his cargo pocket as he spoke, moving to the small side door along the wall they were on. He stopped just short of the door, waiting for a moment as he focused on listening. Obviously, there was a mass of noise from the battle raging, but even over the din, one could usually pick up on any small movements through the walls. But the only sound he heard under the weapons fire was Kyra's ragged breaths.
Let's save this grenade… he slipped the grenade away before pounding the door switch. In the same motion, he stepped into the room and clear of the door, following the wall as he swept the room with the muzzle of his weapon. There wasn't a soul in sight to greet him. Instead, it was clear the barn had been converted into a garage for the pirates' speeders, a variety of civilian swoop bikes scattered haphazardly about. What got his attention though was the larger three-seater open topped land speeder in the center of the room, and the Imperial E-Web turret welded to the frame behind the passenger area.
"Kyra… open the garage door would ya?" a grin exploded across his face, just hoping the heavy blaster cannon actually worked.
Kyra trotted over to the gate, unable to stop her body trembling. Though the sprints and movements really were not hard for her so far, she could not get her breath to calm down, almost hyperventilating at this point.
Come on… Calm down… just one more building to take and we're done! She gulped, the calm moment in the barn, compared to the near constant shooting outside, had her mind focusing on the past couple minutes. She knew for certain she had hit at least four pirates over the past few minutes, one clean through the head.
I… I've killed someone now… how do I go back from this!? She wanted to break down sobbing right then and there. The only thing that stopped her was knowing her team was relying on her.
A loud whine drew her attention behind her, seeing Roy standing on the hull of the speeder they found, the massive blaster turret in hand. Its tripod made it stand high enough that he was comfortably standing behind the massive weapon, the grips just below his eye level. He gave her a simple nod, and an almost insane grin barely visible in the green washed view she had. How is he grinning about this!?
She shook her head, trying to get that thought from her head, pressing the switch to raise the door. As soon as it started opening, she ran back to the speeder, scrambling over the hull to drop into the pilot's seat. Thankfully, it was a model she was familiar with, barely even taking a moment to start it despite not having the ignition key.
"Swing us out and keep us slow!" Roy shouted that over the din of the speeder's engine, a moment before he fired the gun. Each shot was a magnitude louder than those being fired by their pistols, and it was firing dozens of them. The brilliant bolts were nearly blinding her as he stitched them over several of the few remaining pirates, visible through the still opening door. The blasts literally tore chunks off the pirates, severing limbs and burning parts away.
Once the door was open enough, she pressed the accelerator, gently guiding the speeder free of the door and swinging the nose toward the main house. Roy above her swung the repeating blaster back and forth across the area, utterly decimating the remaining defenders before his fire shifted to the house. The massive bolts ripped into the house, the windows and open door being lit by the shots as they treated the walls as paper. In moments, the enemy fire, which had been pinging off the hull, ceased all together as Roy continued to turn the wall ahead of them into nothing but blast holes. After what felt like an eternity, he ceased fire, the heat coming off the barrel of the heavy weapon was so intense that it seared Kyra's skin.
"Alright! Time to get in there!" he shouted as he leapt off the gun, one of his sleeves ripped open and smoking.
"Roy! You're hit!" she panicked as she shut the speeder down and scrambled after him.
He stopped for barely a moment, glancing at the wound and shrugging. "Eh, I wouldn't count that as a hit." He still had a smirk on his face, drawing his pistol back out and trotting to the house.
Kyra let out a small groan and followed, pulling her own pistol back out of her bag. Stodel was only steps ahead of her, footsteps on her right drawing her attention to Holden running up from the ridgeline, likely having begun climbing down when Roy opened fire with the cannon.
"Hey Roy! Think any of them survived that barrage?" Holden spoke only a little louder than his norm as the group all came to a stop near the door of the house. Roy was the only one with his weapon raised and poised to fire, aiming for the door.
"It's possible. Holden, your two man. Kyra, Stodel, go to the edges of the building and watch for runners."
"No need. Building doesn't have a back door, I didn't see one in my scouting." Holden spoke up before Kyra could take a step.
"Alright, follow us in then." As soon as he spoke, he stepped into the house. Immediately upon him entering, blaster fire rang out, several red bolts lancing out the door. Inside were several blue flashes, followed by Roy crying out in pain.
Roy! I can't let him die! He's all I have left of home! Kyra moved to rush through the door, trying to get past Holden.
"Kyra!" he yelled her name as he physically stopped her, shoving her against the wall. "Maddie, on my go, get to the window and lay down some fire!" he let go of Kyra only to pop around the corner, spitting a torrent of rapid blasts from his weapon as soon as the muzzle cleared the corner. There was at least one scream in the room, Madelyn darting across the door and to the open window, where she opened fire herself. As soon as she did, Holden ducked back, pulling a grenade from his pocket.
"What!? No! Roy's in there!" Kyra went wide eyed as she tried to stop him, grabbing his arm.
"Kyra, he'll be fine. Trust me." He jerked his arm free before priming the grenade, releasing pressure on the thumb switch.
What is he doing!? Roy said to always keep the switch pressed until you throw it!
Holden visibly counted off a couple of seconds before chucking the grenade into the room. Maddie clearly saw the action from the corner of her eye, as she ducked out of the window. The grenade detonated only a moment after entering the room, the fuse having counted down in his hand.
"Roy!" she shouted as she ran around the corner, Holden unable to stop her this time. Inside the room was a mess of crates and boxes, Roy leaning up against one. By the debris cast by the grenade, he had been sheltered by the box. His face was completely clinched, his arm limp at his side. On his chest was a small burn, right where his collar bone was.
The sound of her boots got his attention, his eyes snapping open and going wide upon seeing her. "KYRA, NO!" she was too late to notice a massive Zabrak pop up over a crate in the back of the room, leveling a blaster pistol at her chest.
The next moment seemed to last a lifetime for her, the muzzle of the pistol in the Zabrak's hand lighting up as a bolt ripped out of it. She tried to direct herself to the side to dodge the bolt, but even in this momentary slowed reality, all she could really do is watch as the red energy slammed into her upper arm. Time returned to normal the moment the energy hit her, letting out a scream as the familiar burning pain ripped across her arm. She clutched the wound as she fell to the floor, blood seeping out between her fingers. A rapid flurry of bolts ripped by above her from the doorway, followed by an odd popping sound and ending in utter silence. Tears leaked from her eyes as she continued to moan on the floor, her wound burning like she was being stabbed with a thousand knives.
"Madelyn, get on comms with the base, tell them to send the marines and medical. We have a lot of equipment to clean up, I've got these two…"
Holden's voice drew her attention over to where Roy was leaning on the crate. Holden was crouched beside Roy, opening a pouch on his waist and pulling out several bacta patches.
"No! I'm fine, just hurts like a son of a bitch! Treat her, I got myself!" Roy snatched a patch from Holden with a blood covered hand, Kyra catching his small glance her way. The only way she could describe the look he gave her was one of absolute fear. After his almost insane giddiness earlier, it scared her to see.
The pain in her arm pulsed at her once more, Kyra shutting her eyes to try and block the pain out, unsuccessfully. I forgot how much blaster wounds hurt…
Madelyn watched as the marines swept the area, creating body piles and equipment piles as they inventoried the battle. All told, last she heard they had fought nearly forty pirates, and utterly decimated them. Half of those they fought had been caught by grenades in their sleep, never standing a chance. As much as she knew the battle being won was a good thing, something about their tactics simply didn't sit right with her. Throwing a grenade into a room of sleeping people didn't feel like a very honorable way to go about doing things. But she had to admit, it had been brutally effective. Following that up with finding the speeder with a mounted E-Web had turned what was developing into a fight into a pure slaughter. The only issue came when they moved to clear the last building and discovered their leader, on his feet, and protected by an energy shield. That shield had survived blasts from the E-Web, a grenade, and nearly a dozen rifle shots before breaking.
She tore her eyes away from the marines, directing her attention to the small boxy shuttle the marines had used to get out here, where Roy and Kyra were. Kyra was wrapped in a blanket, her skin as pale as a ghost. She was in shock, both from blood loss and the battle, nor could Madelyn really blame her for that. She was just a mechanic after all.
Roy was leaning against the shuttle, a look of annoyance on his face. His right arm was in a sling, and his now ruined jacket was lying on the shuttle ramp. Beyond that, he seemed almost normal. Also unsurprising to her as this sort of fight was his entire job.
"Hey Madelyn. Anything new?" Holden walked up beside her, drawing her attention away from the ship.
"No, the two rascals over there are fine. Should take a few days to heal, and Kyra's in shock, but nurse said it will pass."
"Good. That got way too close for comfort at the end there."
"Agreed" she let out a small sigh looking up at the sky. What she wanted to find, was stars. Instead, all she could see was the dark green of the gas giant they were orbiting. "How are you holding up Garrett?" she let her eyes drop back to him as she softly asked her question.
"What do ya mean? I'm fine. I mean, no one died this time, right?" he looked away from her as he spoke, rubbing the back of his head. This pulled his sleeve back, revealing a small piece of white ceramic on a leather cord around his wrist. Madelyn knew exactly what the bracelet was, paying almost no attention to it.
"Don't give me that. You normally aren't so… bland." She couldn't think of a better word for how he was acting, as he deflected almost every single one of her attempts at humor with him. Granted, some of that was normal, but he also used to joke back at her. In fact, he did the same with the rest of the squadron. All of his briefings had snide jokes or bits of humor in them normally.
"Yeah… I guess not…"
"The nebula?" she winced as she mentioned the location of their last major operation. Three months ago, a trio of star destroyers found their Venator and its escort ships on a maintenance stop. The ensuing battle had been the most brutal fight for her life she had ever been in. in the end, they lost three corvettes, a frigate, and a light cruiser. Every squadron lost several fighters, her own being reduced to just five pilots. Holden's swift orders and leadership were the only reasons any of the Venator's fighter wing escaped to regroup with the ship.
"Yeah…" his eyes dropped to his wrist as he rubbed the ceramic of the bracelet, letting out a small sigh.
"You know you can talk to me, right? I know… whole fraternization, you're my superior thing, but I am your friend too." She smirked at him, gently grabbing his shoulder and giving it a squeeze.
"Yeah, you keep pushing that. It's just still… raw. That's all." He returned her smile in kind, the gesture putting a small flutter in her gut. It wasn't that she hadn't seen him smile before, or that she hadn't gotten him to smile herself before. There was something different and genuine to this smile that simply felt different to her.
"Alright, well, don't you forget what I said, Gary." She stressed his nickname as much as she could, earning an eye roll from him.
"Get back to work you goof ball."
"Sir yes sir cappie sir!" she shouted that out as she snapped out a mock salute.
Holden just shook his head and walked off to help the marines, Madelyn catching a small chuckle as he left.
Good. He could use some laughter. No matter how small.